Hollis Edward Beckett (June 22, 1896 – October 22, 1976) was a politician in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario who represented the riding of

York East York East was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada at different times. It was located in the province of Ontario. History The first federal riding of York East was created by the British North America Act ...

from 1951 to 1967.

Background

Beckett was born in

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

to George M. Beckett and Margaret P. Drew. He married Emily Stephens Copeland, who was born in

Collingwood, Ontario Collingwood is a town in Simcoe County, Ontario, Canada. It is situated on Nottawasaga Bay at the southern point of Georgian Bay. Collingwood is well known as a tourist destination, for its skiing in the winter, and limestone caves along the Nia ...

, on September 24, 1927, in York, Ontario.

Politics

He was elected in the general election in 1951, Beckett defeated Agnes Macphail, the CCF MPP, one of the most prominent socialists in Ontario. Beckett was re-elected in the general elections in 1955, 1959, and 1963. In 1958, he defeated a challenge by

Richard Rohmer Richard Heath Rohmer (born 24 January 1924) is a Canadian aviator, lawyer, adviser, author and historian. Rohmer was born in Hamilton, Ontario, and spent some of his early youth in Pasadena, California, as well as in western Ontario at Windsor ...

for the Progressive Conservative nomination. He served as a

backbench In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...

member in governments headed by Premiers

Leslie Frost Leslie Miscampbell Frost (September 20, 1895 – May 4, 1973) was a politician in Ontario, Canada, who served as the province's 16th premier from May 4, 1949, to November 8, 1961. Due to his lengthy tenure, he gained the nickname "Old Man O ...

and

John Robarts John Parmenter Robarts (January 11, 1917 – October 18, 1982) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th premier of Ontario from 1961 to 1971. He was a member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Early life Robar ...

. On March 27, 1961, Beckett was appointed the Chair of a Select Committee of the Legislative Assembly whose goal was the review and consolidation of the Municipal act and all related Acts, including the Planning Act, the Assessment Act and the Ontario Municipal Board Act. The Committee presented its Final Report on June 15, 1967 and the work of the Committee formed the basis of legislative reforms which remained in effect for over thirty years. Select Committee Report
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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beckett, Hollis Edward 1896 births 1976 deaths People from Scarborough, Toronto Politicians from Toronto Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs